Tauvasa Tanuvasa

Tauvasa Tanuvasa Chou-Lee, a Papua New Guinean with Polynesian roots, has very recently been re-elected by the Papua New Guinea Legal Fraternity to the Papua New Guinea Law Society (PNGLS) Council as a Councilor for the fifth time this year. He has been a PNGLS Council member since November 2015 and has dedicated his time and energy to support and mentor law students and newly admitted lawyers and also promoting high standards for the profession with his colleagues in the profession. As some may know, Papua New Guinea is the most multiculturally indigenous and multilingual country in the world and  Tauvasa is knowledgeable of every aspect of his country and is culturally attuned to its dynamics and challenges.

Tauvasa has been the PNG Law Society’s representative on the PNG Legal Training Institute Council since 2016 which oversees the only Institute in PNG that offers Practical Legal Training designed to help develop and prepare people to be eligible for admission to practice law in Papua New Guinea. It is chaired by the Chief Justice of PNG.

Soon after being admitted as a lawyer in Papua New Guinea in 2005, he joined the PNG Office of the Solicitor General in early 2006 gradually rising through the ranks to ultimately become the Solicitor General of PNG which he currently is and has been since late 2018.  He has been a courtroom lawyer since 2005. The Office of the Solicitor General is the Principal Legal Advocate for the Independent State of PNG (State) in all civil, constitutional and non-criminal court proceedings brought by and against the State.

Tauvasa is a fully accredited mediator in PNG and is a member of the Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) Committee headed by the Deputy Chief Justice. The Committee, among other things, regulates and governs the Court annexed mediation in PNG and also assists in legislative reform of ADR in PNG.

Tauvasa is passionate about the South Pacific Region which he hails from and he has strong connections with people in other countries within that region. He is keen to share its uniqueness to the CLA and if elected to the CLA Council, hopes to add value to the CLA Council in appreciating and understanding the dynamics of the region’s diversity apart from his own country’s diversity.  Further, he can effectively assist in the CLA Council’s reach in the region and promote the CLA’s objectives as enshrined in the CLA Constitution.

If elected to the Council, he hopes to complement the experiences and expertise of other leaders of the CLA Council with his own experiences and expertise with the aim of enriching and supporting the work of the CLA. He acknowledges that there is still a lot to learn, and he is willing to learn from other leaders from the different regions who are a part of the CLA. He is willing to give his utmost best to the Council, if elected.